Machel ready to break the mould

– take soca global
The labels are many as are the accolades, and the hype about him is real. If no one has said it yet, people have certainly been thinking it; Machel Montano is to soca music what soca music is to many of us, liberating.

Can someone say “Machel! Machel! Machel!” then get a rag or flag and wave it like crazy or better yet, hit the streets like a wild bull charging to one of his infectious hits. The track that comes to mind is “Blazin d Trail”, which was a staple on the carnival scene back in 2008.

Considering that the man and his music have been entrenched in the soca consciousness of Caribbean people for two decades and counting, it is not surprising that he now holds god-like status in the region. But many of his fans prefer him as a man; the man who is clearly above his contemporaries, but sells himself as another soca artiste who is working on crossover success.

Machel is huge, no doubt, but he like other soca entertainers is yet to penetrate the mainstream market. There are exceptions including Kevin Little and his hit, “Turn Me On” and Rupee’s “Tempted to Touch”, but they only appear to have achieved what the Soca King himself has been thirsting after. Machel, through recent collaborations with performers the likes of Cuban-American rapper, Pitbull, has knocked on the door and is slowly walking through it.

Machel talks a lot about “conquering new grounds” and he has achieved many firsts since his breakout performance back in 1987 in his native Trinidad and Tobago. Recently, during his stay-over here for the ‘Machel for Mash’ concert, he spoke of where soca music is going and his role in marketing it to an international audience.

“My purpose, objective has always been to take Caribbean music to international standards. I’ve always tried to make my concerts and my shows  bigger than before, larger than life, as much as they can entertain people,” Machel told reporters here. He said Caribbean artistes, with the exception of a few who have been palatable to international market, have always directed their music to carnival and related fetes, basically to the “jump and wave” and to fuel the local revelry.

He continued that artistes in the region have to concentrate more on working harder and creating a sound that does not only supply “Carnival or Crop Over or Mashramani”, but music that expresses the Caribbean’s lifestyle on an international level. Machel said reggae pioneers such as Bob Marley were influenced by the different sounds emanating out of the mainland of the US and according to him, the time has come for artistes to listen to what is coming out of the markets they hope to break into.

Machel mentioned his interaction with R&B superstar Beyonce, who performed in Trinidad and Tobago in February, saying that she loved the vibes of soca and the energy of the music. He shared the stage with the US chart topper and described her concert as electric, professional and solid. He said it will take time, but ultimately the success of soca music will do with what the artistes do with the objective sitting squarely in front of them. “People love this vibe,” he added.

Machel said he has no immediate plans to collaborate with Beyonce but disclosed that some lines of communication have been established. He added that some time in the future an opportunity might present itself. “…Sometimes it happens when the stars aligned and you are in the right place at the right time. I cannot say yes or no right now,” he added.

Machel has also been faced with the challenge of trying to record international music aimed at being global, while at the same time aiming to satisfying a huge regional fan base. He spoke of sacrifices, saying that the question of “giving up one for another” often comes up and he is currently taking a backseat and working on his music to see what effect it is having. He mentioned that he has interested international artistes such as Pitbull and Lil John in doing soca music, but that the goal now is to “interest us [Caribbean artistes] in wanting to have songs on billboards charts”.

Machel spoke of his absence from Trinidad carnival this year saying that some people were upset, but noted that he used it as an opportunity to focus on where his music is going. He opined that Caribbean artistes need to go in a different direction, which is, to leave the hardcore carnival stuff for the younger generation to determine how they want to shape it and to focus on revolutionizing the music for the mainstream markets. He said too that quality of songs is important as is the material they have to offer a global audience.

“…We have to sing about life. Sometimes we sing about jumping and waving and wining because this is what we making music for only and that is not going to really transfer to people’s understanding that easily in America and in Europe,” he said. He stressed that the message is simply not global saying “people want to know that ‘tonight is going to be a good night’”, in reference to the tune made popular by the US band the Black Eyed Peas.

Machel appears keen to break down the barriers facing soca music and there is good reason to believe he is entirely capable of doing so. This is the same guy who sold out two back-to-back shows at Madison Square Garden back in 2007 and returned to the same venue for an encore sold-out show in 2008. His onstage performances are unparalleled and he often says that when he is performing the first person he wants to entertain is himself, because once he is having a good time then people certainly will. At least, that is what motivates him.

He said he is never worried about taking his performances to another level, adding that some days he is likely to be criticized for having a poor showing. But he was also modest not to mention that reviews of any poor showing from him are so few they are practically forgotten.

(ianaseales@yahoo.com)